


Forgotten Below Bedrock

by goosebxrry



Category: Hermitcraft RPF
Genre: also sorry if stuff is ooc im tired, also this is inspired by a tumblr post the links in the desc, and at this point im done revising it, anyway, hi yes is this the best thing ive ever written? no absolutely not but its good enough, i honestly rlly like the dynamic btwn these two whether its platonic or not, ive been trying to edit this for so long, so here y’all go have some ex and zed content bc they dont get enough
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:20:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25492237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goosebxrry/pseuds/goosebxrry
Summary: Ex is banned to the void, trapped under bedrock for an eternity.Then, Zedaph falls through, and he is given a chance to redeem himself.
Relationships: Evil Xisuma & Zedaph, i guess it can be read as romantic if you’d like
Comments: 38
Kudos: 170





	Forgotten Below Bedrock

**Author's Note:**

> :) hi there
> 
> honestly when did ex become one of my favourite “hermits” (does he count as a hermit?) alongside zed, what is it about them?
> 
> anyway yeah inspired by this amazing post by rzdhc on tumblr
> 
> https://rzdhc.tumblr.com/post/624307344496525312/void-bois

It was the most terrifying experience Zedaph had gone through in a while. Who left the trapdoor to his Bumless Pit open?

One second, he was walking, smiling as he schemed up a new contraption, gears already clicking and shifting in his brain. The next, he was falling down a tiny hole, sweater ripping as it dragged across the stone walls and scraped his elbows, knees welling up with blood as the jagged andesite tore his jeans, and he screamed, because he knew what was coming.

There was no pleasant way to die, but the void was... not in the top ten. Or twenty. Or fifty.

In fact, Zed would go as far to say that it was the worst way to go. Tears were already pooling in his eyes from just the expectance of the pain the air opened up and a cool chill alongside uncomfortable weakness washed over him, courtesy of the void.

He was paralyzed, unable to move his limbs as he dropped. He didn’t usually freeze up in danger, his most common reaction was loud humour panicky restlessness.

But right now? He was completely incapable of anything. It was like the blood, previously flowing through his veins, had turned to solid ice.

And the little opening in the bedrock got farther and farther away. It was getting harder to gulp in enough oxygen through his less than ideal breathing pattern, and he could tell that any moment now, any second, he would be dead— but not before he could experience the agony that came with every pixel, every atom, of himself being ripped apart.

It had happened once before, back when he was testing out flight mechanisms below the world, completely oblivious to how it felt when he would die.

The phantom pains lasted for weeks.

And then there was a different feeling, similar to a grip around him— that was strange, but maybe he just didn’t remember it. Zedaph whimpered, fully prepared for the pain to take over and for him to be killed.

But it never did. Instead, he felt himself being pulled closer to something— someone? —warm.

Hesitantly, he opened his eyes.

A figure was floating, as though in creative mode, just above the ground, and holding him against their chest, away from inevitable death. From the way their feet glitched, that was probably where the damage began.

Why weren’t they taking damage? Shouldn’t they be in pain?

But all Zedaph could really make himself focus on was their red armour and quiet voice, hushing him as he continued to tremble and sob, clutching onto their forearms as he desperately tried to ground himself— something that wasn’t easy to do when all around you, there was just empty space.

“It’s... okay, Zedaph.” He said stiffly, his voice surprisingly familiar as he carried out an awfully awkward job of rubbing circles into his back. It was as though he were mimicking it but had never, himself, done it before.

His voice was distorted but quiet, with a noticeable British accent, Zedaph’s brain processed. That was a good thing to focus on, try and figure out hoe and why he knew this man. Focus on that and not how close he was to his death.

It wasn’t quite like Mumbo’s accent, nor was it too similar to his own. It had the same intonation as Xisuma’s, but it was a little strange, kind of like—

Wait! Evil Xisuma.

Wasn’t he supposed to be evil, though? Why would he catch him? That made no sense, none of this made sense, why did he ask Impulse for a stupid hole down to bedrock anyway, why in the world would he—

“Shh, you gotta breathe,” Ex said.

Why was he being so nice?

“Wh- Why’re...” Zedaph trailed off with a strangled sob that he didn’t quite manage to swallow. He looked up again, surprised as he realized Ex wasn’t wearing his helmet. Tangled white hair fell down his shoulders and his red eyes were focused on him intently, almost worried.

“Why am I... what?”

“Being nice,” He managed. His chest heaved for air. It was impossible to breathe down here, it really was.

“You’ve always shown me kindness, I’ll return it,” He replied politely, looking up temporarily to glance at the opening he’d fallen from. “Plus, not even I would willingly drop you into the void.”

Zedaph forced his breathing out of it’s irregular pattern to match Ex’s.

Evil Xisuma shifted, floating little higher, and thus farther from the world barrier. It was the strangest situation, the only thing keeping him from death being his friend’s evil brother.

And yet, he wasn’t as scared as he thought he should be.

Ex didn’t seem to have malicious intents, and from how he’d been acting so far... well, he seemed to be trying to calm him down, so far. Was he going to save him?

“Do you think you can message someone to come to your base? You probably can’t climb back out on your own.” Ex said. “And I can’t go above bedrock.”

Zedaph was about to nod vigorously, thank him a thousand times for saving his life and allowing him mercy instead of letting him go through an agonizing respawn, but something about his expression seemed.. off.

“What’s wrong?” Zedaph asked, his voice mostly recovered. Ex blinked at him.

“Nothing?”

He frowned. That was a lie, and he could see right through it. Was he... sad to see him go?

“No, no, something’s definitely wrong. What is it?” Zedaph continued insistently. He wasn’t even sure why he was being so pressing for the emotional state of someone who had attempted to kill everyone and everything on the server before, but this felt different.

He’d been friends with Ex when he dressed up as Wormman, and under it all, under all the thinly disguised pain that translated to hatred, Ex seemed like a genuinely okay person. Zed could see that.

Sure, he understood why Xisuma banned him to the void, but he seemed different now from the last time they’d seen one another. More soft-spoken. Kinder, on the outside this time around. Not shouting and angry and threatening them all.

“...Nothing’s wrong, Zedaph.” He replied, but his voice was quieter, and he continued. “It’s just... I don’t remember the last time I spoke to someone.”

Ah. So he was lonely.

Zedaph hummed quietly as he thought. He supposed it made sense, the void wasn’t the warmest of places— metaphorically or literally. It wouldn’t be difficult at all for one to become lonely in the most desolate place in Minecraft.

“I can still hear you from above bedrock, right?” He asked. “I mean, maybe once I’m safe, we can, y’know,”

Ex looked at him, eyes lighting up as he seemed to realize what Zedaph was implying. He looked like a puppy, with wide and hopeful eyes, equal parts surprised and happy.

But then, it all died and Zedaph was left with a broken frown.

“I— yeah, but you shouldn’t. I’m being selfish.” He said. Before Zedaph could ask anything, he continued. “Xisuma doesn’t want me interacting with any of you, we both know I’m a danger. Let’s just forgot you ever saw me, okay?”

He wanted to stand up, make Xisuma look at him in the eyes, but there was only so much he could do while being held. So he settled for a sturdy grip on his arm.

“You’re not being selfish. It must be lonely down here, and you want a friend.” Zedaph said, and Ex hesitantly looked at him. “Xisuma can’t control who I talk to. If you want to have a conversation with me, I’m absolutely down to hang out by the Bumless Pit and chat.”

Ex nodded numbly.

“You can call me Zed, by the way. If you’d like.” He added. “That’s what my friends call me.”

If Ex wanted a friend, he was one hundred percent ready to be that. It wasn’t like it was just out of pity— he would be lying to say that the time he spent in the Wormman getup, Ex as his sidekick, weren’t something he often thought back to with a smile.

“...Alright, Zed.” A smile played at his lips as he replied.

And, for a moment, they were quiet. It was comfortable silence, the kind that two... two friends would share. Two friends. Ex was going over the word in his head, over and over and over, almost in disbelief.

But he couldn’t just float there forever with his new friend in his arms.

“Can you message, uh, Tango? He’s a friend of yours, right?” Ex broke the silence. “You should probably get back up above the void. Is your communicator with you?”

Zed nodded and reached for his pocket.

hey tango can you come to my base  
go down the centre and theres a hole in the bedrock

The two of them waited for a reply, and in the meantime Ex began drifting up towards the underside of the bedrock floor. It was a little unnerving, and admittedly, it made Zedaph feel uncomfortably powerless, but he didn’t mind too much.

It also made him feel a little safe.

oh god did you fall in  
omw

He snorted softly at that, and they waited. It wasn’t long until they heard rockets firing and panicked footsteps getting closer. Tango’s head blocked out any light that had previously been shining through, and he froze.

“...Evil Xisuma? Why are you here?” His voice was cold.

He didn’t really know how to respond. Zedaph was trusting, he was willing to give someone the benefit of the doubt. He saw the good in people— Ex included.

The rest of the hermits? They were understandably wary.

“It’s okay, Tango.” Zed reassured him, and Ex did his best to lift him towards Tango’s awaiting arms, and Zedaph was given the help he needed as he crawled back above to the stone floor.

The void was strange, it was energy-sapping and endless and dizzying. Ex almost, almost, felt envy as he watched Zedaph disappear from his view, strength returning, quietly explaining that he wasn’t a bad person.

Words he never thought he would leave someone else’s mouth.

A few moments passed, and he waited. Then Tangos face reappeared. To Ex’s mild surprise, he leaned over and, very hesitantly, reached out. His other arm was presumably holding on tight to the stone above him, but nonetheless, the handshake he was offering was definitely a show of trust.

He could easily pull him down, kill him. Maybe as a younger man, the thought would have crossed his mind.

But he just smiled, taking Tango’s hand and shaking it.

“...I didn’t really expect to be doing this today,” Tango joked, voice rigid.

“Yeah,” Ex mumbled.

Tango smiled, pulling his hand away. “Maybe I’ll see you again,” He said. It was a bit surreal, seeing someone like Tango— a hermit, a friend of his ‘enemy’ —being so nice to him, but that wasn’t a complaint, not at all

He nodded hopefully.

Then Tango said his goodbyes to Zedaph and walked away, leaving him and Zedaph on their own by the Bumless Pit.

And they talked. Ex couldn’t believe it, he was talking to someone. And they appeared to be enjoying his company! He’d always been second best, even before he was Evil Xisuma, back when he was just Xanthus.

(Xisuma always had the lime-light, and anyone who was close to Ex seemed to just use him to get closer to the child prodigy that was his brother, so young yet so powerful in admin powers, equally skilled at void magic.)

But for the next hour or so, he was getting the attention he so desperately craved. It took months in the void, but he was getting it. And he was overjoyed.

▽

After a week or so, after Zedaph had even set up a little room around the hole and dropped in a pig on a lead for company when he wasn’t there, most of the hermits had been made aware of their arrangement. A few had even come to awkwardly, hesitantly, visit him.

It was probably getting late. Maybe late evening, early night. Usually he just went AFK, allowing the numbness of the dream-like state to combine with the numbness of the void and put him into the closest thing he would get to sleeping.

Zedaph called his name, maybe seven times, and he looked up with a blink.

“You seem excited,” Ex noted. Zedaph smiled blindingly at him.

“I am!” He said, and leaned over the gap, reaching out. Ex stared. Zedaph knew the deal, he couldn’t go above bedrock, he would take damage and respawn at lowest possible point of the endless space around him. They’d already made that clear.

“...Zed, you—“

“Trust me.” Zedaph said, his voice serious, and he hesitantly took the hand. Immediately, he was pulled up, and to his surprise, it didn’t hurt. He had been bracing himself for pain, but it just... didn’t come. Instead, he just crawled out, dumbfounded.

“Hey, brother.”

He stood up immediately, eyes wide as he turned around. Xisuma stood a few feet away, stance as casual as he could muster.

“...Xisuma.” He greeted him, a certain hesitance in his voice. Had he... had he been unbanned..? Xisuma presumably smiled from under his helmet, based on the way his eyes crinkled, and opened his inventory.

“I’m told you’re a changed man.” He said, and stepped over. He was holding a communicator. “Would you accept a second chance, Xanthus?”

And Ex gaped, staring at the little grey box in his brother’s hand. He glanced at Zedaph, who met his eyes with a smile and awaited his answer. But Ex wasn’t sure if he was going to be able to form a sentence, not with so many thoughts rushing through his head.

Instead, he cautiously took the communicator, and after a few seconds of just holding it— how long had it been since he held a communicator? —he met Xisuma’s gaze.

He wanted to say so many things, express how he was feeling— something he couldn’t even do without the barrier between his mind and his mouth, his brain wasn’t really processing information right.

“...Thank you,” Was all he managed, and he was tackled Xisuma into a hug. Xisuma stumbled back a step, but a chuckle reverberated through his chest and he returned it.

Ex was welcomed back to Hermitcraft with nothing but open arms.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! i know the ending kinda sucks but im glad you made it through lol. have a great morning/evening/night!


End file.
